Organising Committee
dr ANDREW RAYFIELD
dr Belinda de villiers
dr Belinda de villiers
Dr Andrew Rayfield is a Research Fellow - Research Commercialisation Manager for the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research at Griffith University. Dr Rayfield received his PhD degree from the University of Queensland, where he investigated scaffold proteins in the mammalian brain, in particular glial cells. Andrew has
Dr Andrew Rayfield is a Research Fellow - Research Commercialisation Manager for the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research at Griffith University. Dr Rayfield received his PhD degree from the University of Queensland, where he investigated scaffold proteins in the mammalian brain, in particular glial cells. Andrew has a keen interest in glial cell biology, which is key to the Clem Jones Centre's mission to create therapies for the injured nervous system. Their main project is to create a therapy for spinal cord injury.
dr Belinda de villiers
dr Belinda de villiers
dr Belinda de villiers
Dr Belinda De Villiers is currently pursuing her first postdoctoral fellowship at the Institute for Glycomics. Here she is investigating the role of glycans in HIV biology as well as developing a PC2 safe SARS-CoV-2 surrogate VLP system. Belinda currently holds an AQIRF fellowship for her work contributing towards a solution for the curre
Dr Belinda De Villiers is currently pursuing her first postdoctoral fellowship at the Institute for Glycomics. Here she is investigating the role of glycans in HIV biology as well as developing a PC2 safe SARS-CoV-2 surrogate VLP system. Belinda currently holds an AQIRF fellowship for her work contributing towards a solution for the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. She also holds an ACH2 grant to develop a diagnostic tool for HTLV-1 and lymphocytosis, aimed at patients in the remote Australian outback.
dr Wern Hann Ng
dr Belinda de villiers
dr Wern Hann Ng
Wern Hann Ng is currently a PhD candidate at the Menzies Health Institute, situated at Griffith University's Gold Coast campus in QLD, Australia. Having recently submitted my thesis in December 2023, I eagerly anticipate the official conferral of my doctoral degree, expected by April 2024. My academic journey includes an MSc from Univers
Wern Hann Ng is currently a PhD candidate at the Menzies Health Institute, situated at Griffith University's Gold Coast campus in QLD, Australia. Having recently submitted my thesis in December 2023, I eagerly anticipate the official conferral of my doctoral degree, expected by April 2024. My academic journey includes an MSc from University College Dublin and a BSc from TARUMT (formerly TARUC). My research focus revolves around investigating the roles of host factors, particularly MXRA8 and FHL1, in alphavirus diseases.
Beyond my work with alphaviruses, I actively contribute to a pivotal project centred on the development of a Live Attenuated Vaccine (LAV) for SARS-CoV-2. My role in this initiative involves carrying out experiments to assess the safety profile of the vaccine. Motivated by an insatiable curiosity, I am dedicated to unravelling the complexities of viral infections and am committed to advancing our comprehension of these complex biological processes for the enhancement of public health.
dr YUN SHI
DR Lei Zhang
dr JUN ZHANG
Dr Yun Shi graduated from Simon Fraser University with a PhD in Chemistry, before moving to Griffith University for his postdoctoral work in biochemistry and early drug discovery. Yun routinely applies interdisciplinary approaches that integrate computational, biophysical, and biochemical methods to studying the interactions between prot
Dr Yun Shi graduated from Simon Fraser University with a PhD in Chemistry, before moving to Griffith University for his postdoctoral work in biochemistry and early drug discovery. Yun routinely applies interdisciplinary approaches that integrate computational, biophysical, and biochemical methods to studying the interactions between proteins and their ligands at the molecular level. Detailed knowledge of such protein-ligand interactions have provided valuable information for multiple drug discovery programs towards infectious and neurodegenerative diseases. As a recipient of Griffith University Postdoctoral Fellowship, Yun has also established a fragment-based drug discovery platform for virus infections and other diseases, yielding numerous hits for subsequent drug development. His current research is focused on understanding the molecular mechanism for the function and inhibition of enzymes. These include Toll/interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) domains, many of which are enzymes involved in innate immunity and neurodegenerative diseases, and other glycohydrolases.
dr JUN ZHANG
DR Lei Zhang
dr JUN ZHANG
Dr Jun Zhang is currently a Senior Lecturer at the School of Engineering and Built Environment, Griffith University. His research is to develop microfluidic technologies using passive fluid dynamics and rheology, active magnetic and electrical force fields and combinations for manipulation and separation of micro and nanoparticles,and ex
Dr Jun Zhang is currently a Senior Lecturer at the School of Engineering and Built Environment, Griffith University. His research is to develop microfluidic technologies using passive fluid dynamics and rheology, active magnetic and electrical force fields and combinations for manipulation and separation of micro and nanoparticles,and explore their application in biomedicine such as cancer liquid biopsy.
DR Lei Zhang
DR Lei Zhang
DR MARIYAM MURTAZA
Dr Lei Zhang is an ARC DECRA Fellow at Centre for Catalysis and Clean Energy (CCCE) in Griffith University. He obtained his PhD from the University of Wollongong in 2017. His expertise lies in constructing high-energy lithium-ion batteries and recycling materials from discarded lithium batteries.
DR MARIYAM MURTAZA
DR MARIYAM MURTAZA
DR MARIYAM MURTAZA
Dr Mariyam Murtaza is a Research Fellow at the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research. She is a neurobiologist with expertise in the purification and profiling of primary olfactory cells and stem cells. Mariyam completed her PhD in the UK at the University of Sheffield. Her current research based at GRIDD involves worki
Dr Mariyam Murtaza is a Research Fellow at the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research. She is a neurobiologist with expertise in the purification and profiling of primary olfactory cells and stem cells. Mariyam completed her PhD in the UK at the University of Sheffield. Her current research based at GRIDD involves working at the interface of discovery and translational research to develop a robust cell production process for the repair of spinal cord injuries.
dr Diqi Chen
DR MARIYAM MURTAZA
Dr Tuan-Khoa Nguyen
Dr Diqi Chen is currently a Research Fellow at Institute for Integrated and Intelligent Systems (IIIS). He obtained his PhD from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2020. His expertise lies in image processing, computer vision, reinforcement learning and knowledge distillation.
Dr Tuan-Khoa Nguyen
DR MARIYAM MURTAZA
Dr Tuan-Khoa Nguyen
Dr Nguyen is an ARC DECRA Fellow (2024-2027). He was named as a ‘Rising Stars’, among future leaders in nanotechnology and sensors research field by the Australian’s Research Magazine, 2020. Receiving his PhD in 2018 at the Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre (QMNC), Griffith University, his research involves electronics and mate
Dr Nguyen is an ARC DECRA Fellow (2024-2027). He was named as a ‘Rising Stars’, among future leaders in nanotechnology and sensors research field by the Australian’s Research Magazine, 2020. Receiving his PhD in 2018 at the Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre (QMNC), Griffith University, his research involves electronics and materials of solid state and wide band gap for miniturised physical sensing and bio-electronic applications. He has authored and co-authored 60+ high impact factor journal papers, nearly half in top 10% journal (according to Scopus). Dr Nguyen’s research were featured in PNAS, ACS Nano, Appl. Phys. Letters, ACS Appl. Mater. and Interfaces, IEEE Elect. Dev. Letters, J. Mater. Chem. C., (as the first author) Appl. Phys. Letters, Small, Adv. Eng. Mater., IEEE Elect. Dev. Letters (as equal contribution as first author), and Nature Comm., Science Adv., Adv. Funct. Mater., Appl. Phys. Letters, ACS Appl. Mater. and Interfaces, J. Mater. Chem. C, Nano Energy (as contributing author). Dr Nguyen research focuses on the innovation and development of micro, nano-scaled electronics devices for emerging aspects in sensing, and biological applications.
Haotian Cha
DR SHARDA YADAV
DR SHARDA YADAV
Haotian Cha currently holds a position as a Ph.D. candidate in Queensland Micro and Nanotechnology Centre (QMNC) at Griffith University and will graduate soon. As an Early Career researcher, His main research focus is to develop innovative Multiphysics Microfluidics technology, especially inertial microfluidic technology for flexible cel
Haotian Cha currently holds a position as a Ph.D. candidate in Queensland Micro and Nanotechnology Centre (QMNC) at Griffith University and will graduate soon. As an Early Career researcher, His main research focus is to develop innovative Multiphysics Microfluidics technology, especially inertial microfluidic technology for flexible cell focusing and separation. His research interest area includes dielectrophoresis (DEP), hydrophoresis, inertial microfluidic technology and development of biomedical applications, such as liquid biopsy.
DR SHARDA YADAV
DR SHARDA YADAV
DR SHARDA YADAV
Dr Sharda Yadav is a Research Fellow at the Queensland Micro and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University. Her research background lies in the development of novel diagnostic technologies for early disease detection with expertise in cell cultures, use of stretchable membrane and electrochemistry. Her current research is to explore th
Dr Sharda Yadav is a Research Fellow at the Queensland Micro and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University. Her research background lies in the development of novel diagnostic technologies for early disease detection with expertise in cell cultures, use of stretchable membrane and electrochemistry. Her current research is to explore the role of biophysical properties of tumour microenvironment and also contributes to wearable device development, emphasizing biocompatibility testing and electrochemical sensing.
DR MEGHA MOHAN
DR SHARDA YADAV
DR NAVID KASHANINEJAD
Dr. Megha Mohan is a Research Fellow at the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research. She completed her PhD in cell and molecular biology at Griffith University in 2017. Her current role involves working on characterization of olfactory derived mucosal cells to use them as a cell therapy for spinal cord injury. She is
Dr. Megha Mohan is a Research Fellow at the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research. She completed her PhD in cell and molecular biology at Griffith University in 2017. Her current role involves working on characterization of olfactory derived mucosal cells to use them as a cell therapy for spinal cord injury. She is part of a large team that aims to translate a cell therapy product to the clinic to aid in the improvement of health for spinal cord injury patients.
DR NAVID KASHANINEJAD
DR NAVID KASHANINEJAD
DR NAVID KASHANINEJAD
Dr. Navid Kashaninejad is currently an ARC DECRA Fellow at Queensland Micro and Nanotechnology Centre (QMNC), Griffith University. He has demonstrated high-quality multidisciplinary research output in microfluidics, especially in organ-on-a-chip and disease modelling. His research interests include microfluidic technology and fundamental surface science for various biological applications.
DR JAMILA IQBAL
DR NAVID KASHANINEJAD
DR JAMILA IQBAL
Dr Jamila Iqbal is working as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Griffith Institute for Drug Discovery (GRIDD), Griffith University. She received her doctoral degree from Griffith University, where her research focussed on using small molecules probes to elucidate the mechanisms underlying Parkinson's disease. Currently, her research cent
Dr Jamila Iqbal is working as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Griffith Institute for Drug Discovery (GRIDD), Griffith University. She received her doctoral degree from Griffith University, where her research focussed on using small molecules probes to elucidate the mechanisms underlying Parkinson's disease. Currently, her research centers on using olfactory stem cells from patients with different neurological conditions to uncover biomarkers and screening potential treatments to counteract disease progression. She's developing image-based assays to identify disease-related traits in patient cells, aiming to establish biomarkers for drug screening. Her expertise extends to big data analysis, high content imaging assays and the application of artificial intelligence, reflecting her profound interest in advancing these fields.
DR WENDONG GAO
DR NAVID KASHANINEJAD
DR JAMILA IQBAL
Dr Wendong Gao is a promising early career researcher in the fields of material sciences and biomedical engineering. He has excellent training in Material Sciences and Nanotechnology, focusing on Biomaterials, Tissue Engineering, and Regenerative Medicine. He has published 29 peer-reviewed papers in highly renowned international journal
Dr Wendong Gao is a promising early career researcher in the fields of material sciences and biomedical engineering. He has excellent training in Material Sciences and Nanotechnology, focusing on Biomaterials, Tissue Engineering, and Regenerative Medicine. He has published 29 peer-reviewed papers in highly renowned international journals, including Applied Materials Today, Advanced Healthcare Materials, and Acta Biomaterialia. His research has attracted 700+ citations with an H-index of 14. Additionally, Dr. Gao holds two patents, including a novel wound dressing for diabetic wound healing that has been successfully applied in a clinical trial with the potential for commercialization.